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Assistant teachers of government primary schools are set to launch a fresh protest programme, demanding that their salaries be raised to the 10th grade pay scale and to press for long-pending promotions.
On Saturday, they plan to begin a "continuous" sit-in at Dhaka’s Central Shaheed Minar, reports bdnews24.com.
The protest action is being organised under the banner of the "Primary Teachers’ Demand Implementation Council", a coalition of four teacher organisations. Newly appointed teachers have also announced their participation in the programme.
In addition to the demand for 10th-grade pay, teachers are calling for a resolution of complications regarding higher grade promotions after 10 and 16 years of service and a guaranteed 100 per cent departmental promotion.
“Starting Saturday, 20,000 teachers will stage a sit-in at Shaheed Minar to demand 10th-grade pay, higher grade benefits, and promotions. The protest will continue until our demands are met," Khairun Nahar Lipi, general secretary of the Bangladesh Primary Teachers’ Association (Shahin–Lipi), said on Friday.
“Officials want to talk and explain various things, but we are no longer interested. We’ve raised these issues many times before with no result. This time, we’ll return home only after we achieve our demands on the streets.”
Bangladesh currently has 65,567 government primary schools employing around 384,000 teachers, according to the Directorate of Primary Education.
On Apr 24, the Ministry of Primary and Mass Education initiated a proposal to upgrade the salaries of head teachers from grade 11 to grade 10, and assistant teachers from grade 13 to grade 12. However, assistant teachers remain dissatisfied.
“Administrative officers in various ministries holding Bachelor’s or equivalent degrees receive 10th-grade pay. Nurses with HSC and nursing diplomas get 10th-grade pay. Sub-assistant agriculture officers with SSC and agriculture diplomas also get 10th-grade pay. Police sub-inspectors and assistant teachers in government secondary schools receive the 10th grade with Bachelor’s or equivalent degrees," said Lipi.
“But assistant teachers in government primary schools, who also hold Bachelor’s or equivalent degrees and have completed C-in-Ed, BP.Ed, or BTPT courses, are placed in the 13th grade. Even teachers in PTI-affiliated laboratory schools are paid in the 10th grade. Therefore, we are starting our sit-in to demand the same.”
Talukdar Piyas, a leader of assistant teachers appointed in the third phase in the Dhaka and Chattogram divisions, said: “Primary assistant teachers have long been deprived of their rightful pay and recognition. Primary education is the foundation of the entire system. These teachers work at the first stage of shaping the country’s future citizens.
“If quality education is not ensured at this level, secondary and higher education will also suffer. Those who build the foundation of education deserve fair pay and dignity. In today’s context, the demand for 10th-grade pay is both reasonable and justified.”
Meanwhile, another group of primary assistant teachers, under the banner of the Primary Assistant Teachers’ Organisation Unity Council, has given the government a deadline until November 15 to meet their three demands: 11th-grade pay, resolution of higher grade complications, and a 100 per cent promotion guarantee.
If unmet, they plan to begin protest actions, which include a half-day work stoppage on Nov 23-24, a full-day strike on Nov 25-26, and a sit-in in front of the Directorate of Primary Education on Nov 27.
The group also announced that if there is no visible progress or official response by then, they will boycott exams and begin a hunger strike from December 11, continuing “until death” if necessary.